Courthouse Family Medicine held a grand opening celebration last Wednesday, May 15, at its new office located in the Edgehill Town Center in Gloucester.

The independent family medical practice will provide medical care to patients from Gloucester, Mathews, Middlesex and King and Queen counties, plus other areas, said Joseph A. Leming, M.D. Leming said that some of his patients in Colonial Heights have already made the drive here for their medical treatment since his modern office opened in mid-April.

Leming is supported in the practice by his wife, Vickie, a nurse practitioner. They employ medical assistant Tab Forest of Gloucester, and office manager Reese Miller of Harcum.

Following a ribbon cutting, Vickie Leming provided a tour of the facility. She said the practice includes two rooms dedicated to women’s health care, plus several other rooms for general examination and treatment. One has been set up for pediatric care, although the practice generally treats more teens and adults.

Two rooms have been left unfinished, she said, and might be completed if the clinic expands its services in the next few years.

The practice focuses on wellness, patient education, disease recognition, chronic disease management, and coordination of care with specialty providers as well as urgent care, Dr. Leming said. The office utilizes electronic health records, e-mail and the internet to keep current on its patient recordkeeping.

In certain cases, Dr. Leming said he will make house calls and visit patients in the hospital.

One strength of his practice, Leming said, is that it is independent, not affiliated with the large medical practices in the county. In that way, he said, he and his staff can spend more time with each patient.

"Our primary focus is on the physician-patient relationship," he said. "Care will be driven by the patient’s needs, goals and values, with the majority of the office visit spent with the physician."

Leming said Courthouse Family Medicine uses a "proactive approach to managing our patients’ health." The new office will strive to have patients see their primary care provider at every visit and spend time getting the "comprehensive, quality care they deserve."

Del. Keith Hodges (R-Middlesex) said after the ceremony that it is important to see new businesses of any size opening in this area. The region’s economic recovery will take place "one job at a time."

The Lemings are "a wonderful team" and will provide good quality health care services, Hodges added.

Gloucester County Administrator Brenda Garton said the county will benefit from the new tenant at Edgehill Town Center, which is a reformatting of the old Edgehill Shopping Center. The Lemings’ office is in space that once housed a hardware store.